B1 · Intermédiaire Chapitre 73

Passive and Reported

3 Règles totales
36 exemples
1 min
Règles dans ce chapitre Pratique rapide

Chapter in 30 Seconds

Master the art of telling stories and conveying information through indirect speech and passive constructions in Swedish.

  • Convert direct statements into indirect reports using subjunctions.
  • Utilize advanced reporting verbs to express nuance and opinion.
  • Combine passive voice with reporting verbs for impersonal, professional statements.
Mastering the voice of information and professional distance.

Ce que tu vas apprendre

Advanced passive and indirect speech. Mastering complex reporting verbs.

  • Indirect Speech
    When reporting speech, use 'att' and adjust your pronouns to match who is talking about whom.
  • Reporting Verbs
    It's the Swedish way to say 'they say' or 'it is rumored' using a single passive verb.
  • Passive and Reported
    Turn actions around with '-s' and move 'inte' forward when reporting what someone said.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

  1. 1
    By the end you will be able to: Summarize conversations using indirect speech patterns.
  2. 2
    By the end you will be able to: Use passive structures to report general opinions or facts.

Exemples clés (6)

1

Han sa att han var trött igår.

He said that he was tired yesterday.

Indirect Speech
2

Hon frågade om jag hade sett filmen.

She asked if I had seen the movie.

Indirect Speech
3

Han sägs vara en mycket skicklig läkare.

He is said to be a very skilled doctor.

Reporting Verbs
4

Det påstås att företaget ska säljas.

It is claimed that the company will be sold.

Reporting Verbs
5

Han sa att han inte ville äta.

He said that he didn't want to eat.

Passive and Reported
6

Maten lagas i köket.

The food is being cooked in the kitchen.

Passive and Reported

Conseils et astuces (3)

💡

Pronoun Check

Always pause and check if the 'I' in the original quote should be 'He' or 'She' in your report.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech
🎯

The 'Ha' Trick

When reporting something that happened in the past using the personal construction, always use 'ha' + supine. 'Han sägs ha varit' (He is said to have been).
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Reporting Verbs
💡

The BIFF Trick

If you are unsure where 'inte' goes in reported speech, just remember it always wants to be close to the person (subject) and before the action (verb).
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Passive and Reported

Vocabulaire clé (5)

påstå to claim enligt according to ryktas is rumored meddela to inform/announce hävda to assert

Real-World Preview

coffee

Office Gossip

Review Summary

  • Subject + Verb + att + Clause
  • Subject + [påstå/hävda/meddela] + att + Clause
  • Det + [passiv verb] + att + Clause

Erreurs courantes

In indirect speech, the tense usually shifts back if the reporting verb is in the past.

Wrong: Han sa att jag är trött.
Correct: Han sa att jag var trött.

The subordinate clause requires a conjugated verb, not the infinitive.

Wrong: Det sägs att han vara rik.
Correct: Det sägs att han är rik.

Ensure the tense within the subordinate clause logically matches the intended meaning.

Wrong: Hon påstår att hon vill ha köpt en bil.
Correct: Hon påstår att hon vill köpa en bil.

Next Steps

Congratulations on completing this level! You have mastered the foundations of Swedish grammar. Continue practicing your listening and speaking to gain full fluency.

Listen to a Swedish news broadcast (SVT) and summarize one report.

Continue to: Subjunctive Mood

Pratique rapide (10)

Change the active verb to s-passive.

Boken ___ (läser) av många barn.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: läses
Remove the -r from 'läser' and add -s.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Passive and Reported

Report the question: 'Var bor du?'

Han frågar ___ ___ ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: var jag bor
Reported questions use the question word followed by subject-verb order.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Passive and Reported

Complete the personal construction with the correct verb.

Han anses ___ en av de bästa spelarna.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: vara
In personal constructions, use the infinitive without 'att'.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Reporting Verbs

Choose the correct reported speech word order.

Han säger att han ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: inte kommer
According to the BIFF rule, 'inte' comes before the verb in a subordinate clause.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Passive and Reported

Fix the sentence.

Find and fix the mistake:

Han sa 'jag är trött'.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Han sa att han är trött.
Indirect speech needs 'att' and pronoun shift.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech

Find the mistake in the sentence.

Find and fix the mistake:

Hon sa att hon ska inte äta.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: inte ska
The adverb 'inte' must come before the finite verb 'ska'.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Passive and Reported

Choose the correct form of the verb 'säga' for reporting.

Det ___ att det ska bli snö imorgon.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: sägs
We need the passive present form '-s' for a general report.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Reporting Verbs

Correct the mistake in the sentence.

Find and fix the mistake:

Det ryktas han ska gifta sig.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Det ryktas att han ska gifta sig.
The 'Det' construction requires the conjunction 'att'.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Reporting Verbs

Choose the correct option.

Han frågade ___ jag är trött.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: om
Use 'om' for questions.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech

Fill in the blank.

Han sa ___ han är glad.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: att
Use 'att' for statements.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Indirect Speech

Score: /10

Questions fréquentes (6)

Yes, in informal speech, it is common to drop 'att'.
Use 'om' only for yes/no questions.
Sägs is the present tense (is said), while sägas is the infinitive (to be said). You use sägs in most sentences: Det sägs att....
Yes! Han lär vara rik means the same as Han sägs vara rik. Lär is very common in spoken Swedish and acts like a reporting particle.
It stands for 'I Bisats kommer Inte Före det Finita verbet'. It means in subordinate clauses (like reported speech), 'inte' comes before the verb.
Use s-passiv for formal processes, general truths, and written instructions. Use bli-passiv for specific events, especially those involving people.
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Complex Tenses
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Subjunctive Mood
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